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Importers Scramble For New Crop Soybeans

While old crop soybean sales are tapering off as the 2011 marketing year winds down, importers continue to aggressively book new crop supplies from the drought-hit U.S.

Net new bookings for the latest week totaled 37.6 million bushels, even better than expected. While big sales to China were reported earlier by USDA in its daily announcements of large deals, other buyers are also trying to secure supplies. Those who would normally be loading beans from South America are finding little inventory left there due to this year's poor crop.

New crop sales to date total 597 million bushels; USDA slashed its forecast for the 2012 crop last week to just 1.11 billion.

Exports of soybean meal are also strong, with USDA reporting a sale of almost 136.6 tons of new crop to the Philippines today under its daily announcement system. The National Oilseed Processors Association reported earlier this week that its members July exports were up 11.6% from June and were two-thirds higher than July 2011.

Corn exports remain slow, with just 10 million bushels of new bookings this week. Old crop sales were almost as big as those for the 2012 marketing year, when exports are expected to fall to one of their lowest levels since the export boom began 40 years ago. China continues to take U.S. corn, however, despite forecasts for a record crop there.

Wheat sales are also not getting traction yet, despite concerns sales out of the Black Sea could soon be limited. Totals for the week came in at 14.6 million bushels, below expectations at the rate forecast by USDA for the rest of the marketing year. Asian buyers are taking multiple loads, however, perhaps anticipating lower availability out of Australia if El Nino conditions depress yields there this year.